Myles 's reviews
Review of Beautiful Flowers
12 Jun 08, 13:40
Best Roses in London 
I love this florist. They have such a wonderful selection of cut flowers, pot plants and ready made bouquets. The flowers are always fresh and seasonal where possible - they're very concious of the environmental needs to reduce flower-miles.
Best of all are their roses which smell delicous and seem to last twice as long as roses from other florists - where do they get them?!
Just great, check them out
1 out of 1 person found this review helpful.
Review of Salt Yard
24 Apr 08, 13:29
Great tapas but it's not cheap
Melissa W's review is spot on and there isn't much to add.
This place is a great little restaurant to add to your list of regulars. It has a fresh, lively and comfortable ambience with friendly, attentive staff. The food is delicious and the tapas menu mixes old favourites with some alternative dishes giving you a great opportunity to experiment safe in the knowledge that whatever you order it will excit the tastbuds and challenge you to come back for more.
My only beef with the Salt Yard is the pricing. It leverages its place in the heart of media-land by bumping up the prices by an uneccessary 20% and giving the wine list some real sting (the decent bottles start at £25).
I'll keep coming back to this place but only when budget permits.
0 out of 0 people found this review helpful.
Review of The Newman Arms
24 Apr 08, 09:58
Was a great pub 
It's almost a cliche - take a lovely, cosy, traditional little pub with loads of character; sell it to a overzealous new owner, desperate to stamp their mark on the place and it becomes a souless, modern tavern with a cheap, naff paint job.
Why do people feel the need to change a winning formula?!
There aren't many positives to say about this once great pub except that they still have the pie room upstairs which is a great winter hideaway. The pies and old-school deserts were reliably filling & delicious but i haven't eaten there since it changed so can't vouch for how they are now.
For all it's neaveau faults it's still got more character than the other pubs in the area.
1 out of 1 person found this review helpful.
Review of Bill's Canteen
18 Apr 08, 13:08
Great food and friendly staff 
Where i work Bill's is an institution - so many of my colleagues eat there it might as well be our staff canteen!
They have a great selection of hot food, salads, jacket spuds and ready made sandwiches. The menu changes daily but the lasagne and curry are consistently the best. The sandwiches use an eclectic mix of ingredients (pine nuts - really?) but they're tasty and at £1.50 who's complaining - great value. The spuds are also good value and the salads are fresh.
They give away free coffee throughout the day which is a real treat but you have to time it right. The coffee machine is pretty temperamental and is more on:off than a commercial radio takeover bid. The Cappuccinos trump the Lattes and I’ve never been brave enough to press the button top right – what exactly is that picture of?!
The best thing about Bill’s is the staff. More eclectic than their sandwich ingredients, they make the canteen the lively, friendly place that it is. Bill himself presides diligently over the food and coffee (mending the coffee machine is his raison d’etre) leaving Max & Doris to charm the pants of the clientele with the unique charisma and customer service expertise. Max also does delivery of milk and other essential sundries if requested.
If you can get pass the adroit door staff (try the back entrance first) then you’re just steps away from food-heaven. Enjoy.
1 out of 1 person found this review helpful.
Review of Nicolas
18 Apr 08, 11:45
Best wine shop in Soho
Everytime I go into a chain off-licence like Threshers or OddBins I struggle to find any new, interesting wines to try out. Their selections are so boring and static; they appear terrfied to introduce anything alternative in case it puts off unsophisticated wine buyers - a category i put myself into.
But i want something different and i want someone to help me through the selection process who understands my simple needs and explains about the wine in a intelligent but unpatronising way.
At Nicolas they do that. They always have an alternative selection of wines from smaller, lesser known vineyards (no Jacobs Creek i sight) at reasonable prices. The staff there are knowledgable and willing to spend the time to help you find the wine that suits your need. They also have a good selection of house wines that don't look hideously cheap and definately worth an experiement - i've never been let down.
0 out of 0 people found this review helpful.
Review of Hummus Bros
15 Apr 08, 12:55
Expensive but unique 
As specialist food outlets go a whole restaurant/cafe dedicated to hummus is pretty unique. And they do it well serving tasty fresh hummus with warm pita and a range of other accompaniments including meatballs, kidney beans, extra chickpea (really?!) and some nice chilli & lemon sources.
The only issue is the price. At £5.50 for a decent size portion it doesn't stack up in terms of value. Let’s be honest, hummus & bread has got to be one of the cheapest meals known to man, especially when made on a large scale, so i feel robbed at getting £4 back from a tenner. I'd rather go over the road to ITSU and get a big sushi-box - much fresher and more exotic than mushed up chickpeas.
0 out of 0 people found this review helpful.
Review of Flat White Espresso Bar
15 Apr 08, 12:48
Cosy Soho Cafe
This cafe is a real find. It's very miss-able as you negotiate the hustle of Berwick street market and marvel at the array of bizarre fabrics that spill out of the abundant haberdasheries.
But if you do find it don't miss it. It's small, cosy, extremely friendly and has (some of you may dispute) the nicest tasting coffees in Soho. The coffees are not overly strong but they taste delicious and the dedication of the staff there is something to admire.
They have the usual accompaniment of pastries, croissants etc... and I haven't ventured beyond there so can't comment on the rest of the food.
Check it out, you'll love it - just don't tell too many people as we don't want it to get too busy!
0 out of 0 people found this review helpful.
Review of The Peasant
11 Apr 08, 09:22
Peasantly surprised
I met up with a bunch of friends at Peasant last night and having not been there for a few years was peasantly surprised (sorry).
It's a nice, big, airy pub with lots of charm but not overly sophisticated. They have some good beers on tap (Budvar for one) and a good wine selection. The pub has lots of space and never feels that cramped or crowded which makes it perfect for a quiet pint or for a rowdy, bigger group - you can reserve tables.
The only think that isn't great is the food. They try to pitch themselves as an eating-pub and have a decent sounding menu, however the execution lets it down. They offer a fairly standard a mix of fish, meat & vegetarian dishes but all were a little dry and the mash potato sticky enough to glue your mouth shut.
The staff also seem a little overworked and i spent a good 20 minutes at the bar watching the solitary barman hurrying & cursing his way to serve the gathered crowd. Not great for him or me!
Overall verdict - worth checking out and better than other pubs in the area but don't expect to be blown away.
0 out of 0 people found this review helpful.
Review of The Grand Union Pub
10 Apr 08, 18:19
Great for summer drinks by the canal
Great pub with a nice canalside patio for summer drinking. They have a good selection of beers (lots of european larger and british ales) and really good food. I think they have a BBQ on weekends (summer again) and is a good warm up joint for woodies (club) just round the corner.
The ambience inside is also very nice - cosy, friendly and a little rustic.
0 out of 0 people found this review helpful.
Review of Scarlet & Violet
10 Apr 08, 16:29
Great florist in Kensal Rise
Scarlet and Violet have been going for a coup-le of years but they have carved out a real niche for themselves here.
They always have a great selection of flowers and plants and try to keep them seasonal to UK but that isn't always possible in winter. They are really friendly and helpful and always full of advice about the right flowers for the right occasion.
They offer some useful account services for those who buy flowers regularly. My wife goes in twice a month and buys a big bouquet or plant; it keeps the house full of fresh flowers - it also keeps me in the good books and i don't even have to remember to buy them! (thoughtful but lazy - that's me!)
We should all support local, boutique shops like this - I’m going to start the anti-petrol- station, plastic wrapped flowers gang. Who's in?
0 out of 0 people found this review helpful.